What do you consider the most stupid rule in golf?

[Darksun22]

I really think anything random or man made that effects a shot that would usually be a great shot.

Divot, Sprinkler head, ball in front of the 150 marker, that kind of stuff.

I hit a great hybrid off the tee box on a par 4 just to see it hit something (when we got up, we saw it was the 150 marker gravestone looking thing) and bounce left right behind a tree a few weeks ago. Was kinda pissed but we were playing for money so of course i chipped out and lost that hole after a pushed right pitching wedge in and a 3 put from the fringe.

[scv76]

re:Stupid rules

Hmmm, I've always been perplexed by what I presume is a local rule for protecting immature trees. (Allowing relief from a staked tree, but not that big a$$ tree I always find myself up against)!!

My view on not being able to fix spike marks on the green....Assuming the rules of golf are set up so as not to give an advantage to a player, I find the players who get first crack at the greens (groups with an earlier Tee time) definitely have an advantage over the last group out because as the day progresses the number of spike marks increases due to increased foot traffic. This goes against the idea that no person should have an advantage...Therefore all those who precede me should be DQ'd so I have a better chance of winning

Grounding club in bunker (testing conditions)...this is a real weak concept. I've already stepped into the sand and can tell if it is wet/packed/silty/etc......I get no real information useful to me as a result of touching the sand with my club.....Please enlighten us with what knowledge is gained from touching the sand with a club.

[hendog]

Originally Posted by GatorCallaway

Yeah handicaps are a joke. Its too complicated and can be easily embellished. Kind of like fishing where a 12" fish easily turns into a 24". I've played with a couple people who swear they are 8, 10 handicaps and shank half their balls into the woods and 3 putt every green. I don't have a handicap and don't want one. I'm not gonna be on the tour and it would take away from the fun of the game.

I can understand complaints about sandbagging handicaps (guy says he's a 19 and then shoot 79) but if its the other way then who cares? Its only that person who suffers. If I say I'm a 7 but can't break 90 on a par 70 course then the only impact to you can be for the better.

So it must simply be something that gets on your nerves.

I maintain my handicap so I can monitor my progress and play in competitive events. To me, "fun" is working hard and getting better and then seeing my handicap go down. I was pretty pumped the first time it go below 10.

[GatorCallaway]

Originally Posted by Shorty

Handicaps are only valid, in my book if they are achieved in competition rounds over 18 holes with another person marking your card.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I've played with quite a few guys with DIY handicaps and read enough on this board to know that for many DIY handicappers, as a rule of thumb you could double them.

Proper handicaps are anything BUT a joke. DIY ones are. They are not at all complicated, but when people take mulligans and gimmes and don't know the rules handicaps are pointless.

And of course, there are guys who don't have access to a club or competitions and maintain one honestly. But the guy who says he's been playing for 6 months and says he's a 12 isn't one of them.

I guess I got a little out of control with my post. I can agree 100% with this. More along the lines of what I was trying to say I guess.

[Golfingdad]

Originally Posted by Jason M Henley

I can understand complaints about sandbagging handicaps (guy says he's a 19 and then shoot 79) but if its the other way then who cares? Its only that person who suffers. If I say I'm a 7 but can't break 90 on a par 70 course then the only impact to you can be for the better.

So it must simply be something that gets on your nerves.

I maintain my handicap so I can monitor my progress and play in competitive events. To me, "fun" is working hard and getting better and then seeing my handicap go down. I was pretty pumped the first time it go below 10.

I mostly agree with you, however, a lot of clubs have tournaments where the teams are chosen by blind draws.  That means you sign up for a tournament hoping to play for something and get stuck with one of these vanity-cappers who, coincidentally, "is having one of the worst days of my life.  I don't know what's going on today."  I'll tell you what's going on, you are actually counting all of your strokes for once.

I also don't think that it is getting on anybody's nerves (other than their playing partners), at least in Shorty's case, he's simply saying that he thinks its meaningless.  And, for a lot of people, he is correct.

[David in FL]

I really think anything random or man made that effects a shot that would usually be a great shot.  Divot, Sprinkler head, ball in front of the 150 marker, that kind of stuff.  I hit a great hybrid off the tee box on a par 4 just to see it hit something (when we got up, we saw it was the 150 marker gravestone looking thing) and bounce left right behind a tree a few weeks ago. Was kinda pissed but we were playing for money so of course i chipped out and lost that hole after a pushed right pitching wedge in and a 3 put from the fringe.

Just curious, do you get equally annoyed when you catch that same yardage marker on the fly and it adds 70 yards to your drive?

[x129]

In addition they

a) need to be for the roughly the same stakes. If you told me we are going to play 5 100 dollars rounds to establish handicaps and then 1 100k round, I might not break 200 for those first 5 ones

b) recent. Scores from last summer don't reflect on your current game.

In the end cheaters are going to cheat.

Originally Posted by Shorty

Handicaps are only valid, in my book if they are achieved in competition rounds over 18 holes with another person marking your card.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I've played with quite a few guys with DIY handicaps and read enough on this board to know that for many DIY handicappers, as a rule of thumb you could double them.

Proper handicaps are anything BUT a joke. DIY ones are. They are not at all complicated, but when people take mulligans and gimmes and don't know the rules handicaps are pointless.

And of course, there are guys who don't have access to a club or competitions and maintain one honestly. But the guy who says he's been playing for 6 months and says he's a 12 isn't one of them.

[zeg]

Originally Posted by Shorty

Handicaps are only valid, in my book if they are achieved in competition rounds over 18 holes with another person marking your card.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I've played with quite a few guys with DIY handicaps and read enough on this board to know that for many DIY handicappers, as a rule of thumb you could double them.

Proper handicaps are anything BUT a joke. DIY ones are. They are not at all complicated, but when people take mulligans and gimmes and don't know the rules handicaps are pointless.

And of course, there are guys who don't have access to a club or competitions and maintain one honestly. But the guy who says he's been playing for 6 months and says he's a 12 isn't one of them.

If by DIY handicap, you mean the guys who say, "I usually shoot about an 82 so I guess I'm a 10" then I agree, those can be off by 5-10 strokes quite easily. But I (and the USGA) disagree quite strongly that competition rounds and a marker are essential. Though I disagree that it's necessary, I can see the point behind the marker, but restricting it to competition rounds is silly. The only good that does is keep people who don't bother with much competition from occasionally playing in a handicapped tournament.

Originally Posted by celticstanger

Bare ground is as natural as divot holes (ok, even more so), so same questions and qualifications could apply to those, yet those are often marked off as GUR.

There's a world of difference between a divot and bare ground the committee / groundskeepers have scouted out before play, evaluated, determined is GUR, and marked. So basically none of the same questions and qualifications apply in any way relevant to the rules.

[Golfingdad]

Originally Posted by zeg

If by DIY handicap, you mean the guys who say, "I usually shoot about an 82 so I guess I'm a 10" then I agree, those can be off by 5-10 strokes quite easily. But I (and the USGA) disagree quite strongly that competition rounds and a marker are essential. Though I disagree that it's necessary, I can see the point behind the marker, but restricting it to competition rounds is silly. The only good that does is keep people who don't bother with much competition from occasionally playing in a handicapped tournament.

DIY in the sense that when you are playing by yourself or with friends, and without a marker, a lot of guys are going to write down something a lot different than what they would actually shoot.

I've mentioned this before, but golf is similar to bowling in that they have handicaps to allow people of differing abilities to play in leagues together.  The difference is that in bowling, your handicap is only made up of competitive games.  I don't get to go to the bowling alley whenever I want, shoot a 250 for 3 games, and add them to my handicap.  I imagine the sandbagging and cheating would be such that no honest person would ever want to play in a league again.  Yes, there is still sandbagging, albeit in more subtler forms, but its not as bad as it could be.  (Another bonus being that vanity handicaps in bowling are impossible)

[reedf]

Originally Posted by scv76

Grounding club in bunker (testing conditions)...this is a real weak concept. I've already stepped into the sand and can tell if it is wet/packed/silty/etc......I get no real information useful to me as a result of touching the sand with my club.....Please enlighten us with what knowledge is gained from touching the sand with a club.

I agree that the information you could gain by just touching your club would be the same or even less than what you feel in your feet. However, you could gain a LOT of information by taking a full practice swing in the sand. This is what the rule is meant to prevent. Unfortunately, you cannot disallow one without the other. Being penalized for touching a grain of sand at address is an over-literal interperetation, but it is what it is and a penalty none the less.

[iacas]

I don't think spike marks are even a problem worth mentioning anymore. I occasionally see some scuff marks but even those are rare.

[hendog]

Originally Posted by Golfingdad

I mostly agree with you, however, a lot of clubs have tournaments where the teams are chosen by blind draws.  That means you sign up for a tournament hoping to play for something and get stuck with one of these vanity-cappers who, coincidentally, "is having one of the worst days of my life.  I don't know what's going on today."  I'll tell you what's going on, you are actually counting all of your strokes for once.

I also don't think that it is getting on anybody's nerves (other than their playing partners), at least in Shorty's case, he's simply saying that he thinks its meaningless.  And, for a lot of people, he is correct.

Point conceded. A Blind Draw would definitely screw someone.

[ApocG10]

Originally Posted by scv76

This goes against the idea that no person should have an advantage...

There is nothing in golf that says no player can have an advantage. One person can start their round in the morning, and have bright sunny conditions. The afternoons group could have wind and rain. They still have to play if they are out on tour. They have a standard set of rules, but there is no fair in a game affected by elements.

[ApocG10]

Originally Posted by Shorty

Handicaps are only valid, in my book if they are achieved in competition rounds over 18 holes with another person marking your card.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I've played with quite a few guys with DIY handicaps and read enough on this board to know that for many DIY handicappers, as a rule of thumb you could double them.

Proper handicaps are anything BUT a joke. DIY ones are. They are not at all complicated, but when people take mulligans and gimmes and don't know the rules handicaps are pointless.

And of course, there are guys who don't have access to a club or competitions and maintain one honestly. But the guy who says he's been playing for 6 months and says he's a 12 isn't one of them.

Handicaps are valid when they are attested and handed into the club to be entered into the USGA's systems. Nobody gives a shit what your silly opinion on it is. As usual, your opinion makes little sense and is only posted to cause controversy.

Especially since the rules of golf say every dcard must be handed in. So I guess that throws a wrench into your stupid idea.

[celticstanger]

Originally Posted by zeg

If by DIY handicap, you mean the guys who say, "I usually shoot about an 82 so I guess I'm a 10" then I agree, those can be off by 5-10 strokes quite easily. But I (and the USGA) disagree quite strongly that competition rounds and a marker are essential. Though I disagree that it's necessary, I can see the point behind the marker, but restricting it to competition rounds is silly. The only good that does is keep people who don't bother with much competition from occasionally playing in a handicapped tournament.

There's a world of difference between a divot and bare ground the committee / groundskeepers have scouted out before play, evaluated, determined is GUR, and marked. So basically none of the same questions and qualifications apply in any way relevant to the rules.

So, if you read the question I was responding to, it was around when you would or would not mark divot holes as GUR - the context being that such a rule change was in place.  So, the same subjective evaluation would indeed apply - same committee - GK would go out and evaluate.  So, the same questions and qualifications would indeed apply.

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by celticstanger

Quote:

Originally Posted by zeg

If by DIY handicap, you mean the guys who say, "I usually shoot about an 82 so I guess I'm a 10" then I agree, those can be off by 5-10 strokes quite easily. But I (and the USGA) disagree quite strongly that competition rounds and a marker are essential. Though I disagree that it's necessary, I can see the point behind the marker, but restricting it to competition rounds is silly. The only good that does is keep people who don't bother with much competition from occasionally playing in a handicapped tournament.

There's a world of difference between a divot and bare ground the committee / groundskeepers have scouted out before play, evaluated, determined is GUR, and marked. So basically none of the same questions and qualifications apply in any way relevant to the rules.

So, if you read the question I was responding to, it was around when you would or would not mark divot holes as GUR - the context being that such a rule change was in place.  So, the same subjective evaluation would indeed apply - same committee - GK would go out and evaluate.  So, the same questions and qualifications would indeed apply.

Personally I don't care as much about the rule as filling in a divot [hole] with seed and sand then allowing forcing a player to dig an even deeper hole to make a decent shot if he's unlucky enough to have his ball stops there. As a former grounds crew worker for several summer it seems counterintuitive.

[zeg]

Originally Posted by celticstanger

So, if you read the question I was responding to, it was around when you would or would not mark divot holes as GUR - the context being that such a rule change was in place.  So, the same subjective evaluation would indeed apply - same committee - GK would go out and evaluate.  So, the same questions and qualifications would indeed apply.

Ok, I thought you meant simply playing them as GUR.

Between rounds, marking divots is rather silly. They already fix and/or fill them in. During a round, marking individual divots would be impractical. If there's a weird situation where a divot is somehow so severe that it's warranted, a special case might be made (though about the only case I could imagine would be be a big honking divot on a putting green).

[luu5]

Originally Posted by ApocG10

Especially since the rules of golf say every dcard must be handed in. So I guess that throws a wrench into your stupid idea.

RoG do not reuquire this. CONGU, USGA, EGA etc have different rules regarding handicaps. Only USGA requires each legitimate card to handed in.

And I wonder why Shorty's idea would be a stupid?